Anatomy - need advice

[coin25]

I have not taken any anatomy classes and will graduate in May. How difficult is the dental anatomy? Hopefully it is manageable!

Thanks in advance for sharing your experience.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[SuperTank]

I have not taken any anatomy classes and will graduate in May. How difficult is the dental anatomy? Hopefully it is manageable!

Thanks in advance for sharing your experience.

You may want to ask this question in the dental section as opposed to pre-dental. None of us have taken that course in dental school yet.

 

[dentalWorks]

my underestanding is, dental anatomy focuses very heavy on head and neck. Every single muscle, nerve, ligament, bone, vessels, pretty much ALL that is related to head and neck you have to have memorized cold. Majority of dental schools start thier first class with anatomy, its like the "boot camp" of dentistry.

Seriously, I feel bad for medical students, cause they have to know that level of detail for the ENTIRE body

 

[Anatomy Fanatic]

Just a couple of quick things. Anatomy and Dental Anatomy are two very different courses.

As far as Dental Anatomy goes, you won't have any undergraduate level courses that discuss dental anatomy beyond the level of "enamel on the outside, then dentin is in the middle, and pulp is the innermost" unless you are taking some upper level anthropology courses. All the dental anatomy you'll need will be covered in dental school.

Secondly, at my dental school (Pittsburgh) we separate anatomy into three semi-separate courses all taught during the spring of first year: Gross Anatomy, Skull Anatomy, and Head and Neck Anatomy. The vast majority of the class had never had any exposure to anatomy (other than maybe high school health class) at all and things went just fine for them in all three courses. I had a year and a half of various anatomy classes in undergrad (note the username...) which was very helpful and really made it so I didn't have to study for those courses nearly as hard as other students, but those students without any previous exposure to anatomy did just fine!

Don't stress about cramming in an anatomy class.

 

[dentalWorks]

Hey Anatomy Fanatic

Did they cover Gross Anatomy, Skull Anatomy, and Head and Neck Anatomy all at the same level of detail? Or was there significantly more details to know about skull & head 'n' neck part?

 

[Anatomy Fanatic]

Level of detail from basic to advanced would be Gross-->Skull-->Head and Neck.

 

[Sauce]

I know this doesn't directly relate but I think it is applicable. I am a TA for the general anatomy course at my university but for my degree I am also required to take an anatomy course that is offered through the department of exercise sciences that focuses only on the skeleton, nerves and muscles. This course is much more detailed than the one that I am a TA for. I am expecting dental school to be more detailed. While I am very grateful for my introduction to human anatomy I am sure that I will have plenty to learn and not have too much of an advantage when it comes to head and neck anatomy. My vote if you can squeeze it in do it. If not you will probably be fine as long as you work hard.

 

[Vicviper]

As AF was saying, although it's rather detailed, just like most classes in dental school, it's often expected that you don't have a significant amount of experience in the area as you start (unless it was a pre-req), and so it is still manageable. I had only taken anatomy in high school (incredibly basic), and I've been doing just fine. Also, some schools like Pitt have you do cadaver dissections for head and neck, but apparently most schools don't. Although it's a bit off putting at first slicing up a human, it's often much easier to remember it because of that interactive experience opposed to just sitting in lecture. This has only been our first week of dissections for head and neck, and I think I've really learned a lot from it that might have been harder to otherwise.

 

[prsuser]

At WesternU we take the same courses as our Osteopathic students. The anatomy was no joke! We did the entire body from the neck down, EVERY nerve, vein, muscle etc, and then had a separate head & neck course after that. We are actually right in the middle of neuroanatomy at the moment! It is definitely doable, but it is also a lot of work. I had no prior gross course in undergrad, and I was fine. Just prepare to buckle down and study like you've never had to before.

 

[coin25]

wonderful comments........thanks guys!

 

[dentalWorks]

At WesternU we take the same courses as our Osteopathic students. The anatomy was no joke! We did the entire body from the neck down, EVERY nerve, vein, muscle etc, and then had a separate head & neck course after that. We are actually right in the middle of neuroanatomy at the moment! It is definitely doable, but it is also a lot of work. I had no prior gross course in undergrad, and I was fine. Just prepare to buckle down and study like you've never had to before.

Yeh, alot of dental schools who also have medical schools share the same courses with the med students. The only disadvantage (or actually advantage esspecially if your serious about doing OMFS) to that is that you learn those classes (like anatomy) at a medical level. So those of you at WesternU who might push for 6-year OMFS are going to have a little bit easier time preparing for USMLE 1